The Communications Workers of America has informed AT&T that the union will not attend the mediation process to solve wage related issues.
This development indicates that more than 17,000 Communications Workers of America members in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee will continue their strike demanding more wage from AT&T.
Members of the CWA union include technicians, customer service representatives, and others who install, maintain, and support AT&T’s residential and business wireline telecommunications network.
As a result of the strike, AT&T is using undertrained managers and contractors to perform maintenance and repairs, CWA said. As a result, AT&T customers have experienced widespread outages and long wait times for repairs and service, CWA said. AT&T is yet to confirm the outage.
CWA said undertrained managers and contractors who have been replacing striking workers have been involved in several accidents, some of which have resulted in serious injuries.
“The company is using the mediation process as another delaying tactic,” said CWA District 3 Vice President Richard Honeycutt. “Our message to AT&T is: no more excuses. It’s time to get serious about bargaining so we can get back to work serving our customers.”
AT&T said in a news statement: “The Communications Workers of America (CWA) District 3 has decided it no longer wants to involve a skilled federal mediator to assist in negotiations.”
This decision was unexpected, since withdrawing from mediation seems inconsistent with the union’s allegation of unfair labor practices. This also goes against their stated intention to bargain toward a mutually agreeable resolution, AT&T told TelecomLead.com.
“We are focused on reaching a fair and competitive agreement that benefits our hard-working employees as quickly as possible, and this won’t change. In the meantime, we will remain prepared for all contingencies to ensure our customers receive the excellent service they deserve,” AT&T said.
AT&T’s revenue from residential and business wireline network has reached $8.102 billion during the second-quarter of 2024.
AT&T’s Q2 revenue from business wireline was $4.755 billion (down 9.9 percent), due to lower demand for voice and data services as well as product simplification.
AT&T’s Q2 revenue from consumer wireline was $3.347 billion (up 3 percent) driven by 17.9 percent rise in fiber broadband revenues.
Baburajan Kizhakedath
